Holdback



I (No M011e1.)

G. T. WILSN 1; J. D. HOGH.

l HLDBAK.V

No. 400,811. l PatentedApr. 2, 1889.

UNITED STATES PATENT Fries.

GEORGE T. WILSON AND JOHN D. HOUGH, OF LOVVILLE, NEYV YORK.

HOLDBACK.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 400,811, dated April 2, 1889. Application filed January 4, 1889. Serial No. 295,408. (No model.)

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that we, GEORGE T. VILSON and JOHN D. HOUGH, citizens of the United States, residing at Lowville, in the county of Lewis and State of New York, have in vented certain new and useful Impro vements in Holdbacks for V ehicles; and we do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which itappertains to make and use the same, reference being' had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters and figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in holdbacks for vehicles; and it has for its object to improve upon previous devices of this character, and to render the same more durable and efficient in operation.

The novelty in the present instance resides in the peculiarities of construction, and in the combinations, arrangement, and adaptation of parts, all as more fully hereinafter described, shown in the drawings, and then particularly definedl in the appended claim.

Similar letters of reference indicate like parts in the several views.

The invention is clearly illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which, with theletters of reference marked thereon, form a part of this specification, and in which- Figure l is a longitudinal section through our improved device, the same being shown as attached to the thill of a vehicle. Fig. 2 is a bottom plan View of the holdback attached.

Reference now being had to the details of the drawings by letter, A designates the thill of a vehicle, and B the improved holdback. This holdback comprises a body, a, chambered, as shown at l), lugs or ears c, which are curved, as shown, to conform to the curvature of the thill, a chambered post or standard, C, and a short extension, D, to bear on the thill and to take the wear off the straps and prevent the same from injuring the thill. The end of the body portion, the ears, the standard, and the extension are all formed of a single piece of metal, and the said body, extension, and ears are provided with apertures or screw-holes c, as shown, through which pass the screws or other securing means for retaining' the holdback in position on the thills.

Pivoted within the hollow post C is the hook or catch E, against one end of which bears one end of the flat spring metal piece E2, which piece E2 is confined within chamber of the body of the device by a rivet or screw, f, pass ing through the spring E2 and the upper part of the body of the device, with the head of the screw or rivet being flush with the under face of the body of the device, and when in use finding a bearing against the under side of the thill, as shown in Fig. 1. The under face of this post or standard C is rounded, as shown at g, so as to avoid any sharp corners which would tend to wear the strap, and the catch fits into and forms a complementary part of the said standard,'as will be seen from the drawings. The free end of the hook or catch bears on the outer end of the extension D, which extension prevents the hook from marrng the thill.

The operation is similar to that of previous devices of this character, and will be readily understood from the drawings. A description thereof is therefore deemed to be unnecessary.

The extension D serves to prevent inj ury to or the marring of the thill by the strap, or by the point of the hook or catch, and by the con` struction shown it is not necessary to buckle the strap, as the thill may be put through it as the horse is backed into the shafts until it comes in contact with the holdback. Then by a slight pressure of the hand the hook is thrown forward over the strap, thus n'iaking it perfectly secure; or the strap may be adjusted inside and below the shaft and secured in the same way, or it may be fastened on the top of the thill and answer the same purpose. Should the trace become detached from the whittletree, the horse can 'walk out of the shafts, the hooks springing up so as to let the strap out of the front, thus preventing accidents.

The device is simple, very effective in operation, and is not liable to get out of order.

Ve deem it important that the heel 7e of the hook E have straight sides Z m, as shown in Fig. l, so that when said hook is in either its open or closed position one or the other of IOO said Halt sides Z or Im will have i bearing for its entire length on the 'fiat spring E2, and thus sel-ve to look the parts in position nineh more readily than il the heel of the hook were rounded, as has heretofore been the custom in this class of devices.

What we elimini. as new s- The combination, with the ehambeied body formed with hollow standard and the spring secured nl; one end within said body, of the hook having n vertical portion in said hollow standard, and L heel pivoted within said body sind formed with The flat sides Z and m, bem'- ing on said spril'ig, substzu'itinlly as shown and described, and for the purpose specified.

In testimony whereof we afllx oui.` si gn :LT/uros in pi'esenoe oi two witnesses.

GEORGE T. VILSON. JOHN D. I'IOUGII. Witnesses:

G. N. EASTON, F. M. ARTHUR. 

